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3 Things I Can Immediately Do to Fight Sexism

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Happy Women’s History Month!  Since I wasn’t great at updating this blog last year, my goal is to write at least 2 posts this month related to activism and my identity as a woman.  This one is the first in series.

When I lived in New Jersey, my place was about a 5-minute walk from a train station.  I’d walk the busy path almost everyday, along with many people coming home from New York.  Occasionally, I’d get a cat call – from men driving by.  By the time I realize that it was directed at me, they’d been long gone. Continue reading →

Some Back-to-School Thoughts

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b2sOne day I was on the NYC subway, and an advertisement for a local college caught my attention. It showed stories of individuals who turned around their lives through education. With personal photos and short phrases, it conveyed some inspiring stories. And at the bottom of the ad, it said:

“For more consumer information about this program, go to…”. Continue reading →

On Being a Responsible Donor

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donateOne day, I was walking by the Union Square in New York, when a young man approached me with a tablet in his hand. He said he worked for a nonprofit organization and wanted to share his story. Because I was not in a hurry, I stopped and listened.

Around us were several other young people, similar to his age, all engaging in conversation with passerby about their work. He explained to me about the organization’s work, why the cause they support is so important, and how much he loves working for them. In fact, because they care about their work so much that they step out of the office sometimes and talk to other people to raise awareness, he said.

I truly enjoyed our conversation and told him that I, too, worked for nonprofits. So when the time came for him to  do the “ask,” and I said no, he seemed to be very surprised.  Continue reading →

Thank you!

/ annaikeda / 2 Comments

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I just wanted to take the moment to say “thank you” for being part of this community. I just realized that today I have reached more than 500 views in total.

Yes, it’s a small milestone, but I appreciate every one of the readers. I started this blog at the very end of February, and though I have not been able to post as often as I would like to, this has been an important outlet for me.

I hope I will keep engaging all of you and start reaching more people. Here’s to the next milestone of 1,000 views!

Nice to meet you!

/ annaikeda / Leave a comment

Be the Change“Dialogue is an adventure, an adventure available to anyone. And sometimes it’s an adventure whose outcome can change history.”
— Daisaku Ikeda

I wanted to start this blog to inspire and empower people. Our society today faces many issues, and at times it is so easy to feel powerless. But there is always a way to take action.

What does an ideal future look like? To me, it is where each person can truly express his or her full potential. It is where we value the dignity of life more than anything else. And creating a better future requires that we become better people. It means to me that each of us determine to live our values and principles everyday.

To me what connects the two, the macro of society and the micro of individual, is the principle of nonviolence and nonviolent action. By creating social movements for change, we return the power to where it should belong: the people.  People are sovereign.

I hope I can make a small contribution in providing a space for dialogue, where we can seek solutions and together “change history.”